“Arrest Me”: Gavin Newsom Dares Trump Amid LA Protest Showdown

As the protests over Donald Trump’s brutal immigration crackdown continued in Los Angeles, the president threatened to send Marines to quell what he described as “insurrectionist mobs.”

“Looking really bad in L.A.,” Trump posted on Truth Social around midnight on Sunday. “BRING IN THE TROOPS!!!”

Trump already deployed National Guard troops to the city, over the objections of California Governor Gavin Newsom, who on Sunday formally called on Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to stand down: “There is currently no need for the national guard to be deployed in Los Angeles,” Newsom wrote in a letter to Hegseth, “and to do so in this unlawful manner and for such a lengthy period is a serious breach of state sovereignty that seems intentionally designed to inflame the situation.”

But the Trump administration, of course, has made clear it has no intention of deescalating. Hegseth wrote that the “National Guard, and Marines if need be, stand with [Immigration and Customs Enforcement],” whose immigration raids in California sparked the protests Friday. Trump, in his late-night posting spree, said Newsom—a longtime political foil—and LA Mayor Karen Bass were doing a “horrible job”: “These are not protests, they are troublemakers and insurrectionists,” added Trump, who had a notably more positive view of those who rioted in his name at the Capitol four years ago. And Trump border czar Tom Homan, who gave Dr. Phil a front-row seat to ICE raids Friday, even suggested Newsom, Bass, and any other political leader could be arrested if they “cross that line.”

Newsom’s response: “Arrest me. Let’s get it over with, tough guy.”

The situation in LA represents the boiling over of tensions that had been simmering since Trump took office and began moving on his hardline immigration agenda—a program he and Stephen Miller, his deputy White House chief of staff, have ramped up in recent days. Trump is capitalizing on the unrest to assert even more executive authority—and launch more political attacks on Democrats. And Newsom seems to be reveling in the opportunity to take another high-profile stand against Trump. “These are the acts of a dictator, not a president,” Newsom said Sunday, a day of chaotic scenes in the city that included clashes between demonstrators and law enforcement and a reporter being shot with a rubber bullet during a television broadcast.

Newsom—a frequent sparring partner of the president—has taken a more careful approach to Trump since the inauguration: Though he has pushed back on tariffs and wildfire response, the governor has engaged with members of the MAGA movement—hosting Trump allies like Charlie Kirk and Steve Bannon on his podcast, as he lays the foundation for a possible presidential run in 2028.

With the protests set to continue Monday, Newsom announced the state was suing the administration after Trump “illegally acted to Federalize the National Guard,” warning that his order would “allow him to go into ANY STATE and do the same thing.”

This weekend also saw demonstrations over Trump’s immigration crackdown in other major cities, including New York and Chicago, and more protests were already scheduled for next weekend, when Trump will throw a military parade in honor of Flag Day (and his birthday). Asked about the protests Sunday, including the prospect of demonstrations escalating in other cities, Trump said that “we’re gonna have troops everywhere”: “We’ll be very, very strong,” Trump told reporters, “in terms of law and order.”